Ars at the Tokyo Game Show: the best titles from a world away

The Tokyo Game Show is hot, crowded, and tough to get to. Fortunately, you don …

Three standouts

Amidst the many sequels and franchise pieces, Tokyo Game Show brought out some very interesting titles.

Konami Digital Entertainment’s 『ラビリンスの彼方』（Rabirinsu no Kanata）Beyond the Labyrinth for the 3DS.

Beyond the Labyrinth was a pleasant surprise, developed by Tri-Ace for the 3DS. Tri-Ace's previous works include the Star Ocean series, Valkyrie Profile series, and End of Eternity (Resonance of Fate). Technically challenging Japanese RPGs are their trademark.

Beyond the Labyrinth, from Konami. Very fantasy.

Labyrinth seems to take a different path as a beautifully 3D rendered 2D dungeon crawler. The upper 3D screen shows an expansive labyrinth, where light showers down from above, an unseen sky framed by the towering megastructure the players are stuck inside. The labyrinth is not some claustrophobic tunnel, but the product of unknown labors carried out over millennia. The map is a simple 2D affair. Navigation is simple, but sights are majestic.

To accompany the player, you have a party of 3 NPCs and a mystery girl. Each party member has a personality and can converse in idle chatter. The game almost has an old school MMORPG feel to it. The mystery girl is the only one to be seen on screen. She acts as the primary drive to the plot as she guides the player along the labyrinth, suggesting a path. The combat system is semi-automated and turn-based, where there is a clear rock-paper-scissor strength and weakness relationship. Combat, like the map navigation, is both simple and has an enjoyable depth to it.

Labyrinth is a refreshingly approachable game which uses the 3DS's strength to its advantage. Unfortunately, little more was revealed about the game, even during an interview with the game director; he's keeping his cards close to his chest.

This seems like a good old fashioned return to the basics—where old school RPGs were fun and enjoyable, and had an engaging plot with adventure around every corner, and behind each door. It won't be just the usual JRPG crowd that this title is aiming for.

SEGA's Binary Domain

SEGA presented a futuristic cover-based third person shooter called Binary Domain. We've seen a truckload of these games, including the recent Gears of War 3. But this time, we get to see a little Japanese twist to the genre, as Binary Domain is developed by the newly independent 龍が如く(Ryu-ga-gotoku) studio, the team which developed the well received Yakuza series of games. The developers talked about their focus on the drama and story of the game, and it shows. They're aiming for the world, and I hope they are able to find a top-class localization team so more people can enjoy this one.

Binary Domain from SEGA, an exciting new IP

Binary Domain takes place in Tokyo 70 years in the future. The seas have risen, necessitating the construction of elevated cities. Robotics became essential in the construction, and slowly became pervasive in elevated city life. Of course, not everyone made it up to the happy life up in the cities, attended to by robot servants. The undercities still exist as damp slums, scratching a living from the refuse of the elevated dwellings above them. All seems stable, until one day a man goes hysterical in the middle of a busy building's lobby. In despair, he screams his accusation of someone doing THIS to him, as he tears off his face to expose a robotic skull underneath the flesh.

Construction of human-like robots has long since been illegal, so the exposure of this robot quickly attracts attention from various international parties. Advanced robots have been a Japanese export, and humanoid robots were the expressed domain of one genius. An international team of special operatives is assembled to covertly secure the genius professor and to determine if he did this, and why.

It's material which the seminal cyberpunk film Ghost in the Shell used to make its mark, and it follows on the uniquely Japanese perspective on the definition of man and machine.

One element which increases dramatic tension is the conversation and voice command system. The game system emphasizes trust between the player and squad mates. Squad mates may not wish to draw enemy fire while you move to a superior position, if you haven't worked to establish a working rapport. Chatter between characters is an important opportunity to learn a little about them.

This is a quickly assembled team of unfamiliar characters from across the globe. You may not be able to build a friendly relationship with all of them. Who will you trust? Who can you trust? Especially when the doubting starts? The teaser video tantalized attendees with its hints of even more blurring of that line that separates human from machine, the line defining the "binary domain."

The game itself is a straightforward third person shooter with robot enemies. Blowing off limbs only slows or hinders the enemy. The tin soldiers start stupid, but one can expect additional complexity as the game progresses. The boss battle was well scripted, dramatic, but without becoming annoying. The traditional Japanese tendency to leave the coolest moments of action to the cut-scenes was thankfully absent, as you got to control the gun through all the tense moments.

The environment was intricately detailed, reflecting the Yakuza developers' insistence on realism. They had decided to build on what they knew, and they knew Tokyo better than anywhere else. Real-life locations +70 years made an appearance, adding a very real air of believability. It takes time and effort to inject a sense of realism into a town, making it look as if people had lived in it. I have always found Japanese games to be uncomfortable with creating these backdrops, but Binary Domain didn't hold back.

Still in development, Binary Domain looks like a potential hit. It blends a sophisticated plot with complex storytelling. Especially after Gears of War disappointed some with its narrative, players looking for a more engaging story could do far worse than take a look at Binary Domain.

Capcom's Phoenix Wright Ace Detective Vs. Professor Layton

Finally, I have a Capcom crossover title that I'm excited to see. No, it isn't Marvel vs. Capcom. Nor is it Street Fighter vs. Tekken. It's Phoenix Wright Ace Detective Versus Professor Layton. The top two mystery crime solver franchises meet head to head in a worthy title, and I'm glad to report it looks really good.

Phoenix Wright, appearing for the first time in 3D, finds himself in a distant land, in an uncertain time period. He finds an equally displaced Professor Layton. Both instantly take a mutual dislike to each other, as Layton investigates a particular girl. The criminal this time is a young girl called Mahony (a close homonym to "magic" in Japanese), who is accused of being a witch. It doesn't help that Mahony actually has some supernatural powers, such as knowing the contents of books she hasn't read yet.

The story was penned by the writer of the Phoenix Wright series, and the ace attorney this time is facing not an orderly courthouse but an angry mob as witnesses, a knight of the religious order as prosecutor, and various clergy as judges. The world is out to get this girl, and only Phoenix and his naïve sense of justice is here to protect her from death.

With the stakes so high, Phoenix and Layton must learn to cooperate on the case. The image of the two side by side, pointing their finger in unison in a double "OBJECTION!", was a truly thrilling scene. I hold nothing but high hopes for this title.

Professor Layton VS Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney. A cross over that I can enjoy!